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Monday, January 31, 2011

Assuming we really do get that forecasted 12 inches of snow tomorrow...here's a great recipe for homemade snow ice cream! I remember my parents making this when we were kids. Personally, since I have a milk allergy, I never ate it, but I'm pretty sure my siblings LOVED it! :)

Go HERE, login to your Dillon's/Kroger's account. Click on the blue "special offers" box on the right side of the page. Load it to your card!
I don't know how long this will last so hurry!!! Coupon expires Feb. 7th.

Go HERE to print a $5/1 coupon off any Zantac product 24. ct. or larger. You'll have to fill out a form to access the coupon.
Looks like this is included in the Dillon's Mega Event. Let me know if any of you are sure about this. Also, this coupon will be great for CVS next week as they have and ECB deal for it.

Yay! I just learned that the Valentine Friend Pack from McDonald’s is out. Each friend pack is $1 and contains 12 coupons for FREE items that can be used by kids ages 12 and under. Below is a list of the coupons included…

There quite a few new coupons on Redplum today. Redplum coupons have a low print limit and don't last long, so if you see some you want to print do it quickly.
The BarS coupon would be great to use on the Dillon's Mega Event!
Go HERE to print!

Do you ever have one of "those" weeks in the kitchen? Last week was terrible for me. I wound up scorching one of my meals so badly that I had to throw it away. Note to self...don't leave the kitchen and get distracted when cooking dinner. Anyway, it threw the entire menu plan off whack and I wound up going to McDonald's. We were also able to throw in another left-over night last week. In the end I didn't cook a couple of meals I had planned on. So, let's try this again...

In keeping up with keeping better track of what I spend/save, etc. I thought I'd start a monthly post and share with you exactly what those numbers are. So, here's a look at the month of January!

Retail price of all items purchased = *$634.47
Amount I saved w/coupons, rewards, ecb's,etc. = $391.51
Amount I spent out of pocket = $242.96 ($23.26 of that was for newspapers or coupons I ordered).
Amount of ECB's, Register Rewards, Rebates "earned" = $111.70
Average weekly spending = $60.74 (for a family of 5)

*This amount includes all spending for anything I purchased at the following stores: Dillon's, Price Cutter, Walgreens, CVS, Staples, WalMart.
The only expense not included is prescriptions and eating out (which we don't do often) as that is another budget category in my home.

I loaded up the family today and headed to Dillon's and Price Cutter. (Now I remember why I like to shop alone!) We got several items again. I love Mega Events at Dillon's. Price Cutter had sugar and Peanut Butter for $1.00 so we got that and a few other items. I didn't take a picture this round as my hubby thinks I'm a bit nuts doing that! :) I was nice and spared him the agony of watching me place all of our loot on the kitchen table! LOL!
I will, however, list what we got in another post so you can read it if you're interested.

There comes a time in the life of every couponer when they have to take a break from coupon shopping...this is my time! I'm stocked up on almost everything that I can think of except meat. Isn't this the point of stocking up on items anyway??? For you "newbies" that think I shop all the time, I just want you to know that I don't and that it's okay to take a break. It prevents burn-out, but it's also wise to actually use the stockpile that you accumulate! What's the point in having a stockpile if we don't use it? Oh, and it helps the budget as you save money by not SHOPPING and gets my creative juices flowing as I'm sometimes forced to think of different dishes to make!

I'm challenging myself to stay away from the grocery stores for at least 2 weeks other than for the necessities that we need such as milk, eggs, bread, fresh produce and some meat. (I really, really long for a good meat sale!) I'm making my menu's according to what I already have in my stockpile and I'll share them with you Monday! I'll also share what I do purchase in that time just so that I keep myself in check!

So, anybody want to join me in my challenge? Let me know by leaving a comment so we can cheer each other on!

There will be FOUR inserts in tomorrow's paper! You can see the complete list of what's included HERE. This would be a great week to grab a few extra as there are a few B1G1's and some high value coupons included.

Friday, January 28, 2011

Head on over there and you should spot a $2 off ANY 3 Huggies Baby Wipes coupon – no size restriction!! This is a very rare coupon considering there are no size exclusions listed. The travel packs are priced around $1 at Walmart and Target, so just $0.33 per pack after the coupon. Remember to print it twice!

Remember the Bar-S Hot Dog coupon I posted about yesterday? I guess several of you played the game and printed your own coupons. To my complete surprise I just found out that I'm currently in 8th place in this challenge. Would you do me a favor? Go HERE and rate my dish and play the game yourself! Thanks! I really can't figure out how all this works, but hey, it's fun!

Yesterday a record number of people logged in to Spot My Eye and I just wanted to do something to thank my readers for visiting and sharing this site! So I've decided to have another GIVEAWAY!!!

One lucky winner will receive an envelop full of great HIGH value coupons that I will mail to them. These coupons include:
$2/1 Wisk laundry detergent
$2.25/1 Finish dishwasher detergent (should be very inexpensive after coupon)
.75/1 Vitamin Water (on sale for $1 quite frequently. Should be free if your store doubles!)
$5/1 Maalox product (should be free or close to free after coupon)
$2/2 Snuggles Fabric Softner! (this makes it about .70 cents a box at Walmart after coupon)
Plus many, many more!

Here's how to enter this giveaway...

You can have up to 3 entries!!!!

Required entry:

1. Follow this blog via Blogger or Facebook or let me know that you already do. Make sure to leave a comment telling me that you "follow" so you get an entry.

Extra entries:

1. Leave a comment sharing what you like most about Spot My Eye or what you would like to see more of.

2. Share this giveaway with your friends on Facebook, on your blog or with a friend and leave a comment telling me that you did. (I'm totally trusting you here as I obviously can't and don't want to check all of them.)

The giveaway starts today, Friday, 1/28/2011 and closes on Sunday, 1/30/2011 at 7 p.m. The winner will be selected via Random.org and announced on Monday 1/31/2011 here on Spot My Eye! You will have 48 hours to claim your prize. The winner can email me so that I can get their information to send them their prize. If I don't hear from you within 48 hours another winner will be drawn. The winner must live in the U.S.A.

Don't forget...there's 10 more days left to play Dillon's new Coin Toss game that goes along with the Mega Event. You can play every day. Last year I did really well at this, but so far I haven't won a thing this year. Leave a comment and let us know if you win something! Go HERE to play!

Go HERE to print your coupons! I know that Red Gold tomatoes are on sale at Price Cutter this week, but not sure if the "green chili's" is included in that sale. If you find out leave a comment and let us know!

There's a new $1/1 Bar-S coupon you can score from facebook. Just go HERE, submit a recipe and you should be able to print a coupon! This will go great with the Dillon's Mega Event this week...FREE hot dogs!

It's Thrifty Thursday again! Today I'm going to discuss some ways that you can improve your home at no cost to you.

Do you ever just get that anxious feeling sometimes where you feel like your home needs a change? I especially feel like that during this time of year when we have long, cold, dark days in the winter. How do you handle your emotions when the "wants" pop up? I've found that if I just step back, wait, and don't act on those feelings they eventually settle down or go away.

My goal is to be content in my home. Yes, I want it to look nice, but I don't want my contentment to rest on what I have or don't have in my home. In other words, my contentment should not be related to things, but should rest in my relationship with Christ.

We can, however, make changes in our home without spending a dime when those feelings creep in! I've found that if I do these few things, my mind usually gets occupied and I forget all about the "wants" that I experienced just hours before. In the end I love my home again and it feels new and fresh again.

Below are some ideas that I came up with. Please feel free to share your ideas in the comment section below.

1. Clean. Yes, you read that right. Sometimes just taking the time to dust off the shelves, clear off the kitchen counter and mop the floor will spruce up your home more than you think!
2. Open up the curtains and blinds to let some sunshine in.
3. Light a candle.
4. Re-arrange the furniture.
5. Windex/wash your mirrors and windows.
6. Trade out some of your existing decorations with some that you're not using right now.
7. Clean out and organize your pantry.
8. Clean out the refrigerator.
9. Launder the curtains to get the dust off.
10. Wash your bedding.
11. Make your bed....just like mom always said!
12. Clean the carpet.
13. Organize your closet if it's gotten out of hand.
14. Clean the throw rugs around the house.
15. Be social. Inviting friends over isn't just fun, but it forces me to spruce up the place too!

Thursday afternoon CELLFIRE is going to have another fun chance to get coupons for money off your total purchase at any Kroger store!

All you need to do is LOGIN TO CELLFIRE sometime between 10am – 2pm pst. to see if you won. They also just loaded a ton of new coupons so you might want to grab some of those too (a few are great with the current mega event!)

Today only you can get a $20 voucher to Bath & Body Works for just $10, or get a $30 one for $15. This Groupon deal is available in most cities. If for some reason you do not see it listed under your city, look for a larger city closer to you. This voucher is good to use online only and it doesn’t cover shipping.

Anyone up for a movie today? Get a free movie rental code from any Redbox location, when you use the codeMOVIENIGHTat checkout. To use the code you will need to visit yourlocal Redbox location, select “Rent with Promo Code,” enter code, select movie and continue to check out. This code is good for use today 1/27 only.

Wednesday, January 26, 2011

This morning I was up early. I had a meeting before 8 a.m. but thankfully it didn't last long. I dropped child #1 and #2 off at school and child #3 and I headed to Dillon's for the Mega Event.

Here's a picture of what I got. I didn't get a ton of Mega items, but I did make out good on Manager markdowns (things with the orange and yellow tags on them) since I was there so early. I was also happy about all the organic items I was able to snag up. It's a good thing I have a deep freeze! I still have coupons that I'm waiting on to arrive in the mail and after they arrive I'll go get more tomato products.

(click photo to enlarge image)

Retail price was $112.11

I paid $40.21

It should have been about $5 less, but I miscounted my Mega items!

Lesson learned...always, RECOUNT before ringing up!

After I left Dillon's I swung by Staples to pick up my FREE Coffe-Mate creamer! I also had $29 in Staples Rewards to use so I grabbed some more ink while I was there. Child #3 also begged for a candy so I purchased that as well. (Candy not pictured as she was happily eating it while I snapped this shot!)

There are a TON of items included in this week's Mega Event. I personally don't think that there are a lot of great prices though...but that's coming from a "couponers" perspective. Remember that Mega Event's generally run 2 weeks, so if you spot something you want more of get those coupons collected! Also, you need to purchase 10 participating Mega Event items to get the Mega Event price. They DO NOT all have to be the same thing..you can mix and match. There are NO limits on how many groups of 10 that you can buy.

DiGiorno or California Pizza Kitchen Pizza (11.8-34.2 oz.) - $4.49*WHEN YOU BUY ANY 10 $4.99 ea -50¢
Use $1.00/1 California Pizza Kitchen, any coupon from the 12/5 SS insert (expires 1/31)Final Cost $3.49Note: Swing by your liquor department the next time you’re at Dillons, mine had a big Coors display across from the register and it had tearpad coupons for $3.00 off two DiGiorno 12″ Pizzas (no beer purchase required).

Kleenex (75-20 ct.) - $0.99*WHEN YOU BUY ANY 10 Participating Items $1.49ea -50¢
Use $0.50/3 Kleenex Facial Tissue, three (3) packages or one (1) Bundle Pack coupon form the 1/2 SS insert (doubles)
Or Use $1.00/4 Kleenex Facial Tissue, any coupon from the 12/5 SS insert (expires 1/30)
Or Use $1.00/5 HEREFinal Cost $0.66 ea.-$0.79 ea.Note: There was also a $1.00/1 coupon in some 1/2 SS inserts, released in very limited areasCatalina Alert!Runs 1/24-2/20/11
Buy 5 Kleenex=$1.00 off your next order (oyno)
Buy 6=$1.50 oyno
Buy 7=$2.00 oyno

Kingsford or Match Light Charcoal (6.3-8.3 lb. bag) $4.49*WHEN YOU BUY ANY 10 Participating Items $4.99 ea -50¢
Use $1.50 off any meat purchase wyb Buy Kingsford Charcoal 7.9-8.3lb or MatchLight 6.3-6.7lb (says Save at Safeway, but this is a manufacturer’s coupon that can be redeemed anywhere coupons are accepted)Final Cost $1.50 off total meat

Last night I was at a jewelry party and somehow a conversation about pie crust recipes came up. I had such a good time last night visiting with a group of ladies that I didn't even know! Somehow we all connected really well and it was a great time. Anyway, my mother-in-law was with me and I promised that I'd put her pie crust recipe on my blog today to share with the ladies that wanted it.

Marilyn's No Roll-out Pie Crust: (she stressed to me that she didn't create this recipe herself, but found it on a bag of flour several years ago!)

Put all of this in a 9" pie plate in the order listed. Do NOT put in a bowl. Stir with a fork. It will be a very oily mix. Using your hands, smooth the crust around the pie plate bottom and up the sides. Turn the edges.

For cream pies: fork the bottom and bake @ 350 degrees for 10 min. or until browned.
For Pumpkin or fruit pies: Bake @ 350 degrees for 1 hour or until it is done.

You can do a crumb topping on the fruit pies or make a roll out crust for the top!

Tuesday, January 25, 2011

Many people have asked me to share where I order my coupons from. Personally, I have only used one service, but there are a couple others that I hear are good. I've also learned that they all have different policies, shipping methods, limits, etc. So be sure to check that out before you order. My advice would be to order ASAP before the new ad starts to make sure your coupons arrive in time for you to use them.

So what is a coupon clipping service? It's company that has taken the time to clip all those coupons for you and then you are charged a fee for that convenience I usually order 10 of each coupon that I order. I've found that there's usually a couple of coupons every week that I really want more of. An example recently would be the high value coupons for Finish dishwashing detergent $2.25/1 and Snuggles fabric softener $2/2. These allow me to get both these products at a VERY low price...especially when paired with sales. It also allows me to stock up on these products for several months at a time.

Another reason to use a coupon clipping service is that some newspapers don't always have every coupon in them that you want. Manufacturers often times decide to put higher value coupons in different areas leaving many other areas out of the loop! Not long ago I wanted the high value $2/1 Wisk coupon and found that one side of my city didn't have it in any of their papers, but the other side of town did! Instead of driving all over town I decided to pay a low fee and just order multiples of that coupon. I was glad I did as I was able to get 5 bottles of Wisk for a very low price!

So here are 3 reputable coupon clipping services for you to try. After trying them out be sure to write and let me know how you like it. I would love to share with the rest of my readers your responses!

Always ask for a raincheck if an advertised special is out of stock. While you are waiting for the product to come back in, look for more coupons for that product or order them online.

I can't begin to tell you how much money I've saved by doing this! I love doing this at CVS especially when they are out of a product that is *HOT* that week. I usually go 1 or 2 weeks later and still get the great bargain!

This week I'm concentrating on using up what's in the stockpile and freezer.

Monday:
Sausage Links
Pancakes
Scrambled Eggs
Apple slices, grapes
* I did make homemade syrup and LOVED it! Thanks, Tina D., for the recipe!
"I don't know how you are planning to make your syrup but we use equal parts white sugar, brown sugar and water. Heat until dissolved and add a little maple and vanilla flavorings. My kids love it so much better than store-bought syrup. Of course they really love real maple syrup, but it's not in the budget! Tina D."

Tuesday:

Cube Steak

Mashed Potatoes/gravy

Green beans

Homemade biscuits if I have time to get them made.

Wednesday:Potato Soup (I told you last week that we love this so much that we eat it a lot. Expect to see it quite often around here!)
Homemade bread

There is a new $0.75/1 Wrigley’s Extra Gum coupon available. If you have a store that doubles coupons this will probably mean free gum or very inexpensive gum. You could save it too and wait to see if stores like CVS or Walgreens run a BOGO sale on it.

This coupon is available on the CVS website and it prints with the CVS logo on it. It is a manufacturer coupon that can be redeemed anywhere.